Hot on the Trail - Trail Leading
Thursday, December 18th, 2008The use of dogs for trailing after criminals and escaped prisoners is on the rise. Training a dog to trail a criminal must start out like any obedience training, slowly and consistantly. Please pick a quiet place outdoors. Tie the dog to a tree. Have a person, preferably a stranger, pick on the dog, then run away. He runs out of sight of the dog, marking on the ground with his foot the direction he has taken.The assistant can rub his shoes with bacon fat or another material that has a strong odor.
The man must run in the direction of the wind. If he ran against the wind, it would blow the scent toward the dog. When the dog works in the direction of the wind, he is aided and will keep his nose close to the trail.
Take your dog on a long lead leash to the spot marked by the criminal's foot. Have the dog smell the spot. Command "find" and let him go on his way. If the dog loses the scent, always take him back to the starting point, the spot where the criminal marked the trail with his foot.
Scold the dog when he gets off the trail; praise him as he keeps on it. Lengthen the trail each day. Change persons frequently. Keep the dog on the leash while trailing. In cases of actual trailing of criminals, he would go too fast for the pursuers. After a time, the dog can be let loose on the training trails. The assistant can have on a training suit or can be up a tree. The dog is not to attack when he comes upon the person but is to bark and hold the convict from escaping.
The dog must always find his man at the end of the trail. In practice he should always be brought to the criminal, for if he trails every day without finding his goal, he will lose interest. If always he finds his man, he is happy and attentive and feels that he must go on until he does find his man.
This article was provided by pet-super-store an online pet shop that features dog houses and patio pet doors.